1. Bale v Ivanovic

Much of the focus ahead of Spurs v Chelsea will be on the battle of wits between André Villas-Boas and his former sidekick but there are plenty of other interesting match-ups in what promises to be a spectacular encounter. The most telling duel could be the one that pits Gareth Bale against Branislav Ivanovic. The Serb has been in monstrous form this season and, on top of his excellent defending, his marauding down the right has been key to providing Chelsea width when Oscar, Juan Mata and Eden Hazard flit about further in-field. But no player in the Premier League is better equipped than Bale to put Ivanovic on the back foot, or exploit the space that Chelsea increasingly leave behind as they switch to a more eye-catching style.

2. Liverpool's midfield

Jonjo Shelvey has shown signs of blossoming into an important player for Liverpool, boasting power and penetration as well as a touch of unpredictability. However, while he was suspended following his unnecessary red card against Manchester United, Nuri Sahin came in and demonstrated real class and, like Shelvey, a much-needed goal threat. But Sahin was subdued against Stoke in the last outing. In the long term Shelvey just might be the replacement for Steven Gerrad; in the short term, however, Gerrard, like Joe Allen, seems a certain starter for Liverpool so Shelvey and Sahin are duking it out for the remaining central midfield berth. Brendan Rodgers' choice against Reading – and the subsequent performance of whoever he plumps for – will be intriguing.

3. The James Collins Show

Richard Dunne amply fills a special place in the Premier League Hall of Fame, standing atop the tables for Most Own Goals Scored and Most Red Cards Received since the new-fangled top flight took off (though the latter position is shared with Patrick Vieira and Duncan Ferguson, both of whom have also been sent off eight times). At 29, Dunne's erstwhile partner at Aston Villa, James Collins, has probably left it a bit late to barge his way into that esteemed company but his form so far this season has been amusingly bonkers. After a man-of-the-match performance in his first appearance of the season, Collins goofed repeatedly in the next match to help Swansea to a 3-0 victory and he was erratic against Norwich in the game after that. Between those two games he was sent off in Wales's defeat by Belgium, and in the subsequent game gifted Sunderland an early lead before his performance improved and he even came close to scoring at the right end, heading against the bar late on. His display was relatively incident-free against Queens Park Rangers, though he was of course one of the eight West Ham players to get a yellow card, and he minimised mistakes in the defeat by Arsenal. This weekend against a side as bold and brittle as Southampton, he could do anything. Worth watching.

4. The Possible Return of the Missing North-east Goalscorers

Sunderland have depended exclusively on Steven Fletcher for Premier League goals this season but this weekend, fitness permitting, would be the ideal time for one or all of the potentially thrilling trio of James McClean, Adam Johnson and Sebastian Larsson to open their accounts for the season. Newcastle have plenty of firepower too but have had to rely mostly on Demba Ba to find the net: so the Tyne-Wear derby would be the perfect occasion for Papiss Cissé, in particular, to remember how to finish in the league. On the other hand, given he suffered a minor knock whilst playing for Senegal last week, Alan Pardew may see this as a good time to drop Cissé – especially as Shola Ameobi has a happy knack of scoring against Sunderland.

5. Aston Villa's continuing transition amid travails

The last time Villa had fewer than six points from their first seven games of the season they were relegated from the "Today First Division" (1986-87). Paul Lambert's attempt to change the team's style is clear – Villa have averaged 58% possession per match so far this term compared to 49% under Alex McLeish – but the team have not been intricate enough to be able to find Darren Bent with regularity. The manager seems to blame the striker for that – well, that is one explanation for his bold decision to drop the club's record signing – and apparently believes Gabriel Agbonlahor and Christian Benteke do more to get themselves involved in play. But those players will likely have to prove themselves to be finishers close to Bent's level if Villa are to get out of trouble. And Fulham are the sort of team that Villa need to be able to score against. And Lambert's side will probably have to score more than one to get even a point from this game.

6. Mark Hughes's attempt to banish bad memories

Hughes produced dynamic and well-drilled teams at Blackburn and Fulham without spending much money. By contrast, Manchester City spent a fortune when he was their manager but never truly got things together, with laxity by some players and persistent disjointedness, especially in defence, ultimately leading to his dismissal. Everton, who regularly play the way a good Hughes team might be expected to perform, could help intensify memories of Hughes's City reign when they go to dysfunctional QPR, and thus hasten a similar outcome.

7. Manchester United's goalkeeping selection

Sir Alex Ferguson has long been the Premier League's real tinkerman and this season he is semingly intent on breaking the last taboo in tweaking. Dogma maintains that defenders need constancy behind them but this term Ferguson has taken to switching his goalkeepers incessantly. It is not easy to discern a pattern indicating the basis for selecting David de Gea or Anders Lindegaard (other than when one or other is injured), but nor is it right to declare that Ferguson is doing what England used to do with Peter Shilton and Ray Clemence: since this is not an instance of a manager being unable to choose between two top-class keepers, more like Ferguson dithering between two keepers who have bothersome imperfections. Perhaps Ferguson is challenging each of the them to make up his mind for him. Concerns about Lindegaard's fitness may make the decision this weekend; either way, Stoke have the tools to complicate the issue further going forward, if they decide to be more enterprising on their travels than usual.

8. The cut of Swansea's jib

Along with Villas-Boas and Rodgers, Roberto Martínez is yet another manager renewing acquantainces with an ex this weekend but the pickle faced by Swansea's incumbent is more interesting. Michael Laudrup warned after Swansea's thrilling start to the campaign that gloomier times would come but few expected them to be accompanied by rumblings of dissent about the Dane's methods. Laudrup says such gripes have been blown out of proportion but knows the most convincing reply must come on the pitch courtesy of his players. Cutting out the basic individual errors that have contributed to a five-game winless run would be a healthy start.

9. Olivier Giroud in the groove

After an excellent performance crowned by a goal in his last game for Arsenal, followed by a splendidly-taken equaliser for France in Spain in midweek, Giroud appears to have rediscovered his scoring touch, the one quality that had been lacking from his early performances for Arsenal. That is just one reason why Norwich could be on the end of another tonking this weekend.

10. Mario Balotelli

Enjoy watching this gifted warrior before he is driven out of the country. Yes, in his early days at City he did some things that called his worth into question, but overall the 22-year-old has demonstrated more than enough class and commitment to make still harping on about occasional diversions from orthodoxy seem suspiciously vindictive. Balotelli was brilliant for Italy again during the recent internationals and if Roberto Mancini chooses to play him this weekend that could spell bad news for West Brom but good news for anyone who enjoys watching special talents.